CAMPAIGNERS in Burnley have called on the Government to review its work capability tests after concerns people with mental health problems were having their benefits cut.

The Work Capability Assessment (WCA) was piloted in Burnley and Aberdeen and is now used to decide if people are capable of working, or should receive Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

But people in the town living with mental illness who have undergone the test said it was not taking properly taking into account their illness, and was cutting off their benefits.

Last week Burnley MP Gordon Birtwistle and local campaigners from mental health charity, Rethink Mental Illness, met Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, to press their concerns.

Mr Birtwistle said: “I have taken on the cases of a number of my constituents as it was clear the assessment wasn't working for many people with an enduring mental illness.

“We will all encounter mental illness in our lives - either personally, or in relatives or friends. We need to have confidence that the work capability assessment is fit for purpose for everyone - and that it properly assesses mental illness and the impact it has on people's lives.”

Valerie Minns, who runs a carers group for Rethink Mental Illness in Lancashire, said: “People in Burnley living with mental illnesses like schizophrenia were coming to me very worried about not receiving ESA as a result of the assessment, which doesn’t properly take into account their illness and how it affects their lives.

“It’s vital that the Government is aware of the impact these decisions will have in the long-term. If people are forced to seek work before they are well enough through fear of poverty, it’s likely to reduce the chances of them staying in work long-term.”

Mr Alexander will be raising the issue of how the assessments are carried out for people affected by mental illness with Cabinet colleagues.